


Late to the Party

by ladydragon76



Category: Aliens (1986), Transformers (Bay Movies), Transformers (IDW Generation One), Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: Fanfiction, M/M, Warning: Disturbing Mental Images, Warning: violence, character: decepticon ensemble, genre: action, genre: dark, genre: horror, rating: R - Freeform, verse: g1, verse: idw, verse: post 2007, warning: au, warning: character death, warning: gore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-29
Updated: 2012-08-29
Packaged: 2017-11-13 03:13:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/498806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladydragon76/pseuds/ladydragon76
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><b>Summary:</b> The Decepticons aren’t the first to arrive on the planet they’re invading.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Late to the Party

**Author's Note:**

> **Warnings:** AU/AR, Crossover, Character Death, Violence, Disturbing Mental Images, Gore  
>  **Notes:** I am going to assume those reading are familiar with the characters, their usual personalities, aware of both fandoms vaguely enough to grasp what’s happening, and just dive in without much background information. I hope it works. Written for competition_fun’s [Alien Invasion Contest](http://competition-fun.livejournal.com/39338.html).

**Title:** Late to the Party  
 **Verse:** G1/IDW Fusion, Aliens Crossover  
 **Series:** None  
 **Rating:** R  
 **Characters:** Decepticon Ensemble  
 **Summary:** The Decepticons aren’t the first to arrive on the planet they’re invading.  
 **Warnings:** AU/AR, Crossover, Character Death, Violence, Disturbing Mental Images, Gore  
 **Notes:** I am going to assume those reading are familiar with the characters, their usual personalities, aware of both fandoms vaguely enough to grasp what’s happening, and just dive in without much background information. I hope it works. Written for competition_fun’s [Alien Invasion Contest](http://competition-fun.livejournal.com/39338.html).

 

**Late to the Party**

 

“Distress call intercepted.”

Megatron smirked. “The fools. Who do they think can save them from us?”

Soundwave’s helm tipped a little to one side, and Megatron wondered what about that statement bothered him. He would have waved it off, but Starscream spoke up.

“That is odd.”

“Indeed,” agreed Shockwave.

Megatron stood, and walked toward the communications console. If his three top ranking officers were agreeing, something was definitely wrong. “What?”

Starscream sneered. “We just entered this system. How could they possibly have noticed us _and_ activated a planet-wide distress call so quickly?”

Shockwave shifted, a sign of irritation. Megatron ignored Starscream’s abrasiveness in favor of answers. “Put us in high orbit and scan the planet,” he ordered. “They are organics. Perhaps it is some disease in the weak creatures.”

Megatron was obeyed, and in fairly short order he was faced with Starscream and Shockwave bickering over the results.

“Those are clearly organic life signs.”

“I know what organic life readings look like, you imbecile!” Starscream’s wings flicked in irritation. “That does not, however, explain the heat readings. They do not match up with the records we have on this species.”

“They are organic,” Shockwave sneered. “It is entirely likely they have… evolved.”

Starscream’s optics rolled, but Megatron cut across the coming diatribe. “It is inhabited. That is all we need to know.”

“It isn’t,” Starscream insisted. “We should investigate why they were calling for help. We could be walking into anything. It _could_ even be a trap.”

“Are you suggesting that Lord Megatron cannot handle fragile organics?” Shockwave asked, snorting. “That the great Decepticon empire would be crushed by some trap those… squishy creatures laid?”

Starscream sneered. “Oh yes. _Great_ empire we are! A single battle cruiser, planet-less, scraping for energy enough to keep the fifty-some mechs that make up this _great_ empire alive and limping on to the next paltry pit stop!”

“Enough,” Megatron growled. “They’re organics. Do they even have weapons systems that could threaten our shields?”

“Negative,” Soundwave said, joining the discussion from his console. “No defense systems capable of attack. Personal weaponry calculated to be harmless to Cybertronian armor.”

“Of course not!” Starscream snapped. “The reason this planet was chosen was _because_ of the peace-loving ways of the natives.”

“It is energy-rich-”

“Shut up, Shockwave!”

“Enough!” The other mechs on the bridge cringed back at Megatron’s roar. “Take us into a proper orbit for launch. Notify the landing party. Soundwave, you have the ship.” Megatron narrowed his optics at Starscream and Shockwave. “You two are with me.”

Starscream complained until Megatron shoved the business end of his fusion cannon in his face, then came the sullen, sulky silence. Megatron would take that over his Second’s shrill voice any day, and was pleased to spend the shuttle ride to the planet’s surface in relative quiet.

It was anticlimactically empty.

Megatron had expected their arrival to garner some sort of interest or attention. They had landed in what looked like the town’s main park.

“Life signs are registering at subterranean depths.”

Starscream snorted. “Of course they are, you boob! That’s where they harvest the geothermal energy.”

Megatron caught himself offering Primus a quick prayer for patience and sanity, and reached out to cuff Starscream for it. “Don’t talk unless I tell you to.” He narrowed his optics at Shockwave, cutting off whatever expression of victory was coming. He ruled sparklings, Unicron help him. “Deadlock. Take point. Starscream, where are your maps?”

Starscream took out a datapad, thumbing it on, then gestured toward the nearby cliffs.

The dominant species on this planet were tall for organic bipeds. Their buildings rose high, spindly and delicate, and had been built close to the caverns that led below ground. The air was cool, the sky lavender as evening settled in, and the city was silent.

“This is eerie,” Blackout said, voice low, but carrying in the quiet. He glanced at Megatron, helm ducking, but Megatron wasn’t going to reprimand him

It _was_ eerie. At the very least _highly_ unusual. The Decepticons had been to many other planets. Some they traded with for energy, others they conquered. Never before had they landed in the middle of a city and been hidden from.

“Maybe they’re all underground,” Deadlock suggested, both pistols in his hands. “Probably hiding from whatever scared them before we got here.”

“Maybe,” Starscream said, helm swiveling as he looked around. He remembered Megatron’s last order belatedly, and sidestepped in a flinch, expecting a blow Megatron honestly didn’t feel like delivering.

“We’ll know soon enough,” Megatron said. He had his own scanners running at their limits, and could feel the active sweeps from everyone else as well. At least they were alert. For that alone he’d be content with the tension in the air. It felt like waiting at the edge of a battlefield for the combat to begin.

No. Like an ambush.

Megatron scowled, and pushed his troops on to the caves.

When they arrived, the cavern lights were weak and flickering, throwing shadows and bouncing shapes. A dozen mechs weren’t silent, but they were as close to it as the loose rock floor allowed. They followed Starscream’s gestures deeper and deeper, along winding corridors that closed in on them. Megatron and Shockwave, being the largest mechs present were forced to move slower.

The air heated the further in they went, humidity thickening it.

“What is that smell?” someone murmured, voice carrying along the line.

“What’s with these walls?” someone else -Skywarp?- asked.

Megatron reached out, letting his fingers trail over the rough, rippling surface of the wall.

“Ew! It’s slimy.” _That_ was Skywarp.

“Fascinating,” Shockwave said from behind Megatron.

Megatron looked back over his shoulder. “What is?”

“This is not stone.” Shockwave rubbed the pad of his thumb over his fingers, the ‘slime’ glistening in the light from his flashlight. “It is, I believe, organic.”

“Ain’t everything here organic?” Rumble asked.

“Organic excretions,” Shockwave clarified.

“Aw _gross_!”

Megatron agreed, but kept it to himself. “Move on. If they aren’t putting up a resistance, then we shall take what we need and leave this filth behind.”

The line moved forward, mechs being far more careful not to touch the walls, but the next delay came quickly.

“It’s blocked,” Deadlock called back.

“I can fit,” Rumble added.

Megatron growled in irritation. “Go. See how far we have to cut.” His voice carried easily, the strange resin keeping their voices from echoing.

Minutes passed with only the sound of heat-taxed vents cycling. There was a collective flinch as a sharp note rang back, then a few chuckles as Rumble’s voice reached them, creatively cursing.

“Ow! _Ow_! Fragger stop- Ow! That’s my _helm_!”

Even Megatron found himself smiling.

“Sounds like Rumble found a local,” Thundercracker snickered.

“Kick his aft, Rumble!” Skywarp shouted.

“He does not sound terribly far down the path,” Shockwave noted.

Megatron nodded, but assumed Rumble had just been returning to report.

The cursing took on a new tone, and the Decepticons quieted.

“ **HELP**!”

Slaggit! “Blast through!” Megatron shouted.

The _pop-pop, pop-pop_ rapport of Deadlock’s pistols filled the tunnel and slowly they moved forward. There was the higher sound of blaster fire intermittently, but no word on Rumble beyond his distant shouts, and no other signs of the natives at all.

Megatron frowned at the damaged wall, angry with the delays, and put-upon that one of his mechs had been taken.

“It widens!” someone called back, and forward progress sped up until they all filed into a large, open cavern.

The humidity was oppressive, and the air stank. The floor was littered with oblong… objects, standing on their ends.

“ _Those_ are the natives,” Starscream said, gesturing to the walls where pale grey-blue organics were trapped within webs of the same material that made up the walls there and back in the tunnel.

“Guys? Get me. The frag. _Out_ of here!” Rumble yelled.

“Hang on.” Slipside strode out across the floor, ignoring the slime-covered blobs, kicking his way through them, stepping on some.

“So,” Skywarp said, with a nod at the clearly dead natives. “The slag?”

“Ow,” muttered Slipside, shaking one foot ridiculously. Megatron cycled his vents and tried to ignore the fool’s antics.

“Guys?” Rumble called.

“Perhaps it is a sacrificial offering?” Shockwave suggested.

Starscream’s derisive snort predictably followed. “All records I have on this species point to them being evolved well past such superstitious, and violent, nonsense.”

“Your records are quite dated.”

“Guys!” Rumble said louder, more insistently.

“Ow! Oh holy frack!” Slipside yelped. “My foot! Primus! My foot!” Once red plating was bare, blackening metal.

“Someone listen to me!” Megatron glanced at Rumble, but Slipside chose that moment to fall over, whimpering. More of the blobs popped under his weight.

“This one’s alive,” Deadlock announced from where he’d carefully picked his way around the cavern.

“Things that grabbed me weren’t _people_!”

“It _burns!_ ”

“Help… me…”

“It’s awake,” Deadlock shouted over Slipside’s bleating.

Megatron snarled. “Someone help that fool!” He noticed the language programming was functioning properly, but wasn’t going to give Starscream the satisfaction of admitting that that information had been correct, and made his way toward Deadlock.

“Really guys. Can’t ya just get me outta here? Please?”

Megatron waved Deadlock off, the mech moving toward Rumble. “Do you understand me?” Megatron asked.

Bleary, opaque eyes blinked up at him. “Help… Hurt…”

“Peculiar,” Shockwave said, leaning down to bring his face closer to the organic. “My scans show there is another entity inside him.”

Megatron made a face. “Spawn. They are disgusting, sloppy beasts.”

“No, according to the information, this is not one of the two carrier genders, but the fertilizer.”

“The word is ‘male’,” Starscream said with a sneer.

“Fragging _finally_!” Rumble said.

“Can shove ya back in.”

The pause was filled with Slipside pleading, and a couple other mechs cursing at him to be still.

“Nah. Ya’re awesome, Deadlock, ol’ buddy, ol’ pal. High grade’s on me later.”

“Slag that,” someone said from behind Megatron. “That’s like acid, or something. I’m not touching him. Not the way he’s flailing.”

“I think he’s dying.”

“Then _you_ help him, Thundercracker!”

“ _Any_ way,” Starscream said, helm tipping as he inspected the native. “There _is_ something different in there. It’s getting more active too.” The organic moaned, eyes rolling in obvious pain. Starscream straightened, looking around at the other natives. Megatron followed his gaze, putting it together even as the seeker spoke. “It’ll kill him soon.”

“Yeah,” Rumble interjected from near Megatron’s foot. “And I got snatched by the bigger version. We gotta get outta here.”

Megatron surveyed his troops, then shook his helm. “No. We won’t leave without the energon.”

“Some wicked slag,” Blackout said, watching as Slipside thrashed in the pooled yellow-green sludge before twitching, plating melted gruesomely. Helms nodded in agreement, and Megatron snorted.

“Where is the processing center, Starscream?”

Starscream consulted his datapad again, then pointed. “This way.”

Deadlock moved to the front, Rumble stayed close to Megatron, and everyone else followed. Rather, _nearly_ everyone else.

“Shockwave.”

“If I may, Lord Megatron, I would like to observe?”

Megatron was about to deny the request, but the trapped organic’s cries and distress increased, body jerking. Shockwave’s optic brightened, then in a fast move, he caught the small creature in one hand. Its tail whipped about, small mouth opening wide in a weak call.

“Fascinating!”

Megatron shook his helm. “Bring your pet and come along. The smell in here is clogging my filters.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Shockwave hurried, radiating joy as he passed Megatron. Primus, he really did rule sparklings. Megatron was about to follow when a slithering-susurrus sound caught his attention. He turned back to the large cavern, scanners searching for a heat signature, but nothing registered beyond the cooling corpse of the native. His instincts told him something waited, but he dismissed it as insignificant. Rumble was much smaller than he was, and the native people were weak organics. Whatever it was that watched from the dark could not harm him.

Megatron turned away to follow after his troops. They were wasting time that could be used to collect and transport desperately needed energon, and he’d already lost one spark due to the idiot’s own stupidity.

“Slaggit. It narrows again,” Starscream huffed, then hissed, “Keep that _thing_ away from me, Shockwave!”

“Hush,” Megatron ordered. “We’re being watched,” he relayed in Cybertronian. Weapons whined to full charge, and optics lit as the barrels came up to search for targets. “Break through. We move forward.”

“This sucks slag,” Blackout said.

Skywarp snickered, black wings wobbling teasingly as he shouldered Blackout. “Least we know there’s lots of heat to harvest for high grade, right?”

“I can’t breathe.”

“You whine too much. Tell ya what! You pretend for five minutes you’re a mature mech, and I’ll shine your rotors when we get back to the _Nemesis_.”

“Get off me,” Blackout said, pushing Skywarp back. Either Skywarp wasn’t expecting it, or Blackout shoved him harder than it had looked, because Skywarp was thrown into the tunnel wall with a shout.

“Fragger!”

“I didn’t push you tha-“

“Movement! Movement! I got-“

“The slag is that?!”

“Frag me!”

Blackout squawked, hands up to fend off the sudden attack. Whatever it was, it was dark, fast, whip-thin, and had claws that could score their plating. “Sonuva-“

Megatron looked at the small beast still squirming in Shockwave’s hand to the larger creature Skywarp was now trying to pull off Blackout.

“Bastard!” Skywarp snapped, and threw it away from him, arm coming up to aim as Hardtop grunted in disgust and cringed back from the beast.

Deadlock fired, yellow-green exploding outward.

Mechs flung themselves away, but Hardtop was too close. His scream tore at their audials, acid bubbling and hissing through his plating rapidly. He was dead only a moment later, and Megatron returned his gaze to the little one in Shockwave’s grasp. It rasped another cry of its own, a mouth from within its mouth lunging out to snap at Shockwave’s optic as he lifted it.

“I believe it is growing.”

“I believe we should leave,” Starscream said.

“Coward.”

“I’m not a coward!”

“We will not retreat,” Megatron said firmly. He raised his voice. “Don’t shoot them if they’re close and you plan to survive. They’re nothing to us otherwise. Move!”

Hardtop and the dead creature’s bodies were stepped past carefully, and they moved onward. Megatron was very annoyed, and growled at Starscream as the pest dared suggest they leave again.

“I think it wise to regroup. We can’t shoot them, but we could easily return with incendiary or even freezing weaponry.”

“And waste more time? I think not. Now shut up before I shut you up.” Megatron pushed Starscream forward. “Which path?” he asked as the tunnels forked.

“Left.”

“I hear stuff,” Deadlock said in a low mutter a few minutes later.

“It’s just the voices in your head,” Skywarp stage whispered back.

“Friendly fire’s always an option,” Thundercracker said, and a wave of quiet laughter went through the Decepticons.

It was a much needed break in the tension, so Megatron allowed it. They were all warriors and survivors, but it was never pleasant to watch as a comrade suffered and died, particularly from something all Cybertronians had a healthy respect and reasonable fear of. 

Acid. Of all things, the creatures exploded in a mess of thick, killing acid.

“Fraggin’ dark,” someone said as they went further.

“S’what flashlights are for,” chirped someone else, beam of light sweeping around in more spastic arcs than the others.

“Barely worth it.”

“Movement,” came Deadlock’s voice, and everyone stopped in their tracks. Scanners came back on, active sweeps running everywhere. “It’s ahead of us. Multiple contacts.”

“Yeah, and let’s everyone remember to throw the slaggers _away_ from your battle buddy before shooting them,” Skywarp said.

“Those with alternative weaponry should use them,” Starscream added.

“Gee. Ya think?” Rumble muttered from near Megatron’s feet. Megatron hadn’t even known he was still close by, and frowned down at the miniature mech.

They began forward again, slower, more cautious. Beside him, Shockwave’s little beast squalled. “Quiet that thing.”

“Yes, my lord.” Shockwave’s gun arm transformed back into a hand, and he pinched the creature’s mouth shut. “It is shedding its outer layer of flesh.”

“Sick!” Rumble scurried forward, wiping at his plating.

“I don’t care what it does, so long as it’s quiet so I can hear, and doesn’t explode on _me_ like its elder brethren!”

“Yes, my lord,” Shockwave said, and slipped back a few steps to trail behind Megatron.

“Whoa,” filtered back a few minutes later.

“Holy slag.”

“What the frag is-?”

Megatron pushed his way through as the Decepticons clumped together. He stopped as the cavern before him opened up. Dim light, mostly from the machinery, gave the space an orangey-red glow. In the center of the chamber, nearest the heat collecting unit, stood a rather large creature with a fanned crest on its head.

“How fascinating!” Shockwave breathed over Megatron’s shoulder. He moved forward, mechs sidling off to the side to allow him by.

Megatron scowled. What were they so afraid of? The little beast in his hands? The large one in the center? It was still only half Megatron’s height and appeared to be tangled in some contraption that supported its weight. Stretching out behind it was a long, bulbous… tube? It moved, rippling in some sort of peristalsis, depositing more of the blobs from the first cavern. Shapes flitted in the deeper shadows, taking the blobs away.

“The queen,” Starscream whispered, optics locked on Shockwave as he crossed closer to the trapped creature.

“What?” Megatron asked before he could stop himself.

“They’re insectoid?” Starscream replied, sounding unsure. “She is the creator of all the others.”

Just then the little beast in Shockwave’s hands cried out. All movement in the cavern stopped. The queen’s head, which had been tipping in what might have been something like curiosity, reared back. The cry was repeated by her, echoing like shearing metal off the high cavern ceiling.

“We need to leave,” Deadlock said.

“Seconding that,” Rumble piped up.

“Megatron…” Starscream began.

The little one squalled. The queen roared, and very suddenly the walls came alive. The little one dropped from Shockwave’s hands, skittering off quickly from the bright flash of light.

That light, Megatron realized, was the last pulse-flash of Shockwave’s spark.

“Oh frag me!”

“Frag _this_!” someone else said, tone ripe with fear.

“We need to leave,” Starscream shouted.

“Too late,” Deadlock said, gesturing with a pistol behind them.

“Fools!” Megatron bellowed. “Are you Decepticons or cowards?” He took aim, fusion cannon charging as the creatures surrounded them. “Down!”

Smart beasts. They cringed back from the path of light Megatron’s weapon carved, but the queen could not escape. Her scream echoed, over the blaring of alarms as acid melted through the machinery.

**Critical failure imminent. Critical failure imminent,** the alarm repeated in ridiculously calm alien dialect.

“ _Now_ can we leave?” Starscream shrilled.

Megatron snarled, firing at the farthest wall, but that did not stop the swarm of sharp talons and strange secondary jaws snapping and tearing at their plating.

“No!” someone shouted, but was too late as Blackout bent at the waist, rotors fanning out as he crouched and spun. It was a move used often in battle, particularly against organics. Stupid in this case.

The beast was sliced and killed, but Blackout straightened instantly, a scream of his own ripping through the cavern as acid hissed and devoured the rotors. Starscream launched, thrusters on hard burn, and it was only an instant later than Thundercracker and Skywarp joined him. “Grab Blackout!” Starscream shouted, then managed to remind Megatron why he kept the mouthy glitch around with a truly impressive display of aerial maneuvering.

The creatures fell back from the scorching heat of flight thrusters, and those that didn’t were flung away and shot.

“Go!” Starscream shouted, and the Decepticons didn’t wait for Megatron to confirm the order.

Growling, displeased that they had been thwarted in collecting the energy, Megatron followed his troops with Starscream bringing up the rear.

Exiting was considerably faster than entering, and soon the cooler surface winds tugged the heat away from their frames. The city was still silent, but now they knew why, adding a new dimension to the tension.

“Sucks we have ta leave ‘em there,” Rumble said, looking back from the shuttle’s ramp.

Megatron frowned, waiting as the last mechs hurried on board, engines spinning up. “They were foolish enough to get themselves killed.”

Rumble looked up sharply, but retreated without further comment into the shuttle. Megatron entered, keying the ramp to close as he passed the controls. The launch was rough and rushed, no one entirely sure just how bad the ‘critical failure’ of the subterranean power plant would be.

Moments later, it proved to be rather violent. The explosion rocked the shuttle, throwing mechs to the floor. Blackout keened while Skywarp scrambled to help him back up off his ruined rotors. Megatron caught himself by bracing his hands on the ceiling, biting out a curse.

The blast must truly have been impressive because Soundwave was there in the bay when the ramp opened. His visor was bright, the red flickering as Megatron exited. Mechs limped by toward the door, heading to the medbay without needing told. Megatron was about to follow, find his own quarters and beat something until his fists needed repairs. He was stopped by Soundwave’s words.

“Command override; one dash three, alpha, Tarn, nine, nine, seven.”

All optics _jumped_ to Soundwave. “Explain yourself!” Megatron growled.

“Unknown presence detected. Shuttle bay sealed.” Soundwave gestured at Rumble. “Surface thoughts collected. Alien threat detected.”

Rumble shrank back, hands going to his chest. “Oh slag! Oh slag, oh slag, oh slag. No! No-no-no-no-no-no!”

“No way! One of those things is in Rumble?!” Skywarp exclaimed, tone ranging between disgust, fear, and morbid interest.

“Negative.” Rumble sagged to his knees only to be scooped up by Soundwave, and quickly housed in the telepath’s chest compartment. A number of mechs rubbed their own chests. “Current location; shuttle.”

“We can’t kill it in here,” Starscream said. “We need to freeze it. Or flash burn it maybe.”

Megatron growled. “Why do I let any of you live?” He strode to the shuttle, quite well aware of that powerful dagger-tipped tail that had skewered Shockwave. Not that he would cringe or retreat. This was his fragging ship. _His_ empire. Slagging beasts could have the damn planet. They weren’t getting his ship!

A whistle through the air alerted Megatron and he caught the tail with one hand, quickly grasping it with the other. He pulled, and the creature howled. He yanked, and it fell to the floor of the shuttle. Megatron’s gladiator days may have been long ago, but he had always been, and would always be a grappler. He pinned the creature, noting that it was smaller than the queen he’d destroyed in the cavern, but had the fan-shaped crest as well.

“Open the inner doors,” he shouted.

Three of his mechs scrambled to obey, and as they opened, Megatron smacked the control panel beside the doors to reverse the motion, then pitched the beast into the space between. Its tail lashed about, screams of rage and maybe even indignation scraped at his audials worse than Starscream’s tantrums. The doors sealed shut before it could get back to them, and Megatron slapped his hand over the outer door controls.

It clawed at the deck plating, but slipped out into the vacuum of space when it could not gain purchase. Megatron watched for a moment, being sure it didn’t manage some last desperate act, and grab his ship, but it didn’t.

He turned back to the mechs staring at him, some with mouths open in awe, and smirked. “Soundwave. Are there any more?”

“Negative.”

“Good. Release the lockdown, and get back to the helm. We still need energon.”

“Yes, Lord Megatron.”

Mechs scurried for the doors, and Megatron followed. “Soundwave?”

“Yes, Lord Megatron?”

“How are we sitting for photon torpedoes?”

~ | ~

**([Table of Contents](http://ladydragon76.livejournal.com/6214.html) )**

~ | ~

  



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